The Vagabond and The Chef: A Ranma Story
by Raz the Almighty
Summary: After the marriage of Ranma and Akane, what are all the suitors to do? In 'The Vagabond and The Chef, we'll follow Ryoga and Ukyo as they learn to cope with their losts and accidently find love in the process.


The Vagabond and The Chef:

A Ranma ½ Story

Chapter 1

_Prenote_

_I do not own Kuonji Ukyo, Hibiki Ryoga or any of the Ranma ½ Characters. I am surely a a die-hard fan! -_

With the utterance of two simple words, the seams of several people's intertwined lives unraveled before their eyes.

"I do," said Akane happily as she tried to contain her tears.

"I do," Ranma repeated as they then sealed their wedding vows with a kiss.

Shock whelmed in the pit of Ukyo's stomach, despite the overwhelming knowledge of the impending event. Ukyo, ever since she'd seen Ranma with Akane, just knew that they had this 'thing' between them. Of course a little chemistry hadn't stopped her from trying to break the pair up. Hell, it seemed that everyone but Soun and Genma had been plotting against their romance. She had sunk all her money into her humble restaurant in an attempt to root herself into her fiance's life. Ukyo had never really seenthis coming so quickly though. Suddenly, as the burning sensation flared and tiny, little tears began to collect around her bottom lid, she stifled a sob as she turned from the scene.

"Dammit, there's something in my eye," she mumbled to herself bravely as her evasive eyes darted away from worried faces. She'd be damned if she would cry at her fian... at Ranma's wedding. As the wedding reached its end and everyone began to leave for the reception, Ukyo stood in her pastel kimono and silently left with her head bowed. While the bride and groom had walked down the aisle to their exit, the okonomiyaki cook had caught glances at the other heart broken suitors that the two had collected. Between Tatewaki's rambling declarations, Ryoga's flaring chi, Shampoo's ballistic raving, and Mousse's pleasant grin, the whirlwind of emotions was almost suffocating.

Entering the cool, crisp summer night, the click-clack of her wooden sandals and the beating of her broken heart was the only thing the downtrodden cook could seem to hear. Quickly she hurried down the shrine stairs out onto the sidewalk of Nerima's darkened streets. 'Ranma, how could you? How could you do this to me?', she thought to herself as the wind dried the tears to her cheeks. 'Was I not the cute fiancee? I can cook and keep house; Akane can't.' she thought mournfully,'so why Ranma, why did you break my heart?' Her head ached from her own torrent of emotions, her eyes ached and burned with impending tears and the wind nipped at her exposed flesh. As she turned a corner, her sandal bent inward and she cried out in pain. Slamming into the cement, she pushed herself up as her sobs racked her body and she absently punched the ground in frustration. Ukyo knew the answers to her questions, but she couldn't quite accept the facts. Looking around in hopes that no one was watching, she finally came to a conclusion. It was time for another training trip in the mountains. She had to escape their happiness, if not for a little while.

With his mouth agape and a sense of numbness clouding his mind, Ryoga just couldn't believe what was happening before him. The whole day had been just like a series of movie clips to him. He remembered awaking in a field on the outskirts of Nerima and heading into town as he prayed that he wasn't too late for the celebration. He remembered then being dressed in a tuxedo, and standing face-to-face with Ranma as he threatened him about mistreating Akane. He also remembered trying to, once and for all, to explain himself to Akane but only being able to stammer his good fortunes to her. And now, here he was, watching the whole thing as it actually happened and trying to fight his raging sorrow. He didn't want to ruin this day; he knew Akane and, yes, Ranma deserved more than that. Clutching his pant leg tightly as his knuckles grew white, he simply stared down into his lap as the vows were exchanged and the couple kissed. Standing swiftly as the others began to leave, he tried to worm his way out of the crowded shrine. While he knew that he should probably wait around to wish the newlyweds good luck, his heart was already aching and to see her, Akane, in that dress would probably be too much. He would simply leave as quietly as possible; it was the best way.

Exiting out behind Mousse and Tatewaki, he paused on the stoop of the shrine. Leaning over and reaching behind a shrub, the young traveler grabbed the strap of his worn pack and slipped into its familiar grasp. Scooping out the scene, Ryoga frowned at the sight that had unfolded in front of him. It seemed that the heartbroken had sought out comfort from another. Shampoo had finally broken down and was silently sobbing on Mousse's shoulders and even Nabiki was trying to sooth Tatewaki as she led him off to some disclosed location where she'd probably worm her way out of the check. Remembering how Ukyo had tried to hide her tears during the service, he wondered whether or not she too would need a friend. Right now, Kami-sama only knew how much Ryoga truly needed someone to talk to himself.

As he looked over the shrine's entry again, Ryoga was surprised by Ukyo's absence. Had she taken off with Konatsu? No, the feminine ninja was chatting with Azusa and a tall, sharp-dressed blonde man he'd never seen before. Seeing a pastel blur flash between two trees, Ryoga bounced down the stairs to investigate. As he slowly walked after the young cook, he watched as the poor girl stumbled and fell. Pausing with surprise as his hand involuntarily edged forward, he started to run down the block toward her. Of course, as is his luck, Ukyo abruptly stood and fled just before he reached the corner she had fell on. Sighing as he watched her retreating figure disappear into the night, he looked down and frowned. There was the culprit, one of the girl's sandals, laying in shambles on the ground. One of the black straps had snapped and it looked like someone had splinted its heel with their fist.

"Ukyo..." Ryoga muttered uneasily to himself as he crouched down and scooped the discarded item into his rugged palms. As he gently cradled the tiny shoe, it brought a seemly important detail to the surface of his mind. Turning to watch the path Ukyo had taken, a confused look came across her face. "Wa-was...she c-crying?" Ryoga asked to himself as he began after the young woman once again. Over the time they had known each other and plotted against their suitor's relationships, Ryoga felt as if someone had just stabbed his best friend. Taking off after her once again, it wasn't long before his sense of direction began to work its magic and he was back in the forest. "Well...this definitely isn't Ucchan's..." he spoke out loud as he slumped down to sit on a rock. "Great, Ryoga, just perfect! You let another person down..." the lost one commented as he stared down at Ukyo's half-shattered sandal. "Well...I'll try to find her tomorrow then...just as soon as I find my damn way out of this forest," he shouted in frustration as he pulled his pack from his back and started making a fire. A few minutes and one Breaking Point later, Ryoga sat in front of his fire with a log in his lap. Setting Ukyo's shoe to his side, he withdrew a knife from his pocket and sighed as he began to crave.

Standing in front of the small shop, Ukyo stared at the 'closed' sign hanging in its glass front. The light from the dawning sun seemed to give everything a warm and soft feel and the sign was the only thing that she could seem to see. She wondered if this is how things would be, if everyone she ever wanted would always be taken from her. She had willingly made her home off limits to herself but what about all the other things? With the last nights experiences, her wounded heart had once again tried to seal away her womanly charm. Who would want her as a wife now? Hell, when she first came to this town, everyone had believed in her cross-dressing ruse. But how could they really had known? And how could she tell Father she had failed? Ukyo heaved a heavy sigh as if to answer herself.

Her ruddy cheeks were still tender from her constant wiping and her sides throbbed from all her melancholy gasp and sobs. She felt foolish for her tears and the fact that her pillow case had been soaked this morning. Ukyo chuckled for a second as she felt her damn eyes watering again. Soon, the characters on the sign were blurred and the world before her looked like a poor constructed watercolor painting. Allowing only a few more tears to fall and splatter on the top of her boots, she wiped the rest away and turned from Uuchan's. "It's best to go now before anyone sees me..." the chef said quietly as she began her trek. Honestly, she wasn't really sure if what she thought was waiting for her in the forest. Maybe, if she would be luck enough, she'd lose herself there and would never return. Stalking down the street and across the curb with the dawning sun warming her back, Ukyo prayed that better things were on the horizon.

Entering the green foliage that lined the outskirts of the forest, the sensations of the forest over-sweep the young woman. The crisp, clean air and the soft chirping of birds soothed her mind to the point of serenity. She let out a soft sigh knowing that this decision had been one of her best. Here she knew she could relax and figure her future out as well. As silly as it may seem, she had never really thought of a second plan. The reality of even having to think beyond her wishes could have crushed her fragile heart, like it had now. And now she was stuck, with no future husband or dojo, only her shop to support her. As bad as she didn't want to admit it, she was again alone. She could possibly go back to her father and tell him of her disgrace and there was no way she could move to a different town. She had just refinanced her damned shop! Ukyo just had to admit it; she was stuck in this damn town with her damn shop and utterly nothing to look forward to. Ranma had been the only man to even think her cute...well, he was the only one that mattered. "Ukyo, you dumbass, you've really got yourself into some deep trouble...," she stated quietly to herself as she leapt over a tiny brook "I mean, what were you thinking? You saw how he look at her with those eyes..." she said with a pause "I wish he would had look at me like that." Something large, like a deer, shuffled in a nearby brush before bounding away and leaving Ukyo in a spellbound awe. 'That's it...that's the freedom I want,' she thought as the need to run suddenly overcame her. As she watched the last of the figure retreat into the distance, the young girl took a deep breath before running blindly into the green abyss. Faster and faster, her mind demanded as her legs tried to keep up. Her sides and calves ached and her lungs began to burn yet she didn't even slow the least. "Keep running Ukyo, never stop running!," she shouted to herself as she began to pant and her lungs screamed for air. Branches and thorns whipped and scratched at her clothing and flesh in a feeble attempt to drag her down. Out in the woods where she felt truly alone, dear Ukyo was fleeing from reality and running after her sanity.

Suddenly as the young chef came upon the crest of a small mound, she hooked her foot on an gnarled root and went tumbling down the steep hillside. Gasps hurriedly caressed her lips as she rolled over jagged and angry rocks. Soft cries seeped forward from her being as she rolled in and out a large thorn bush. She felt the cool beads of blood collect at her thousands of tiny scratch and knew her side would at least be bruised the next morning. Rolling into the less steeper curve of the hill, she slowed as her body reached the bottom of this death drop. And with the last of her momentum, she revolved right into a cool, shallow stream. "Well...despite that last part...I think I could had called that fun..." the woman wheezed as she stared back up the tiny mountain she had just cascaded from. Somehow, whether it was luck or her second chance, Ukyo had missed all the dagger-like boulders and had survived quite a fall. "Heh, that was stupid of me," she mumbled to herself as she listened to the stream softly flow around her. Sighing as she closed her eyes, she spoke aloud "Great way to start my future..."

"Dammit!," Ryoga shouted angrily as he flung a make-shift sandal across the camp site. Landing and rolling into the pile of all the other ill made shoes, Ryoga huffed as he stabbed his knife into the hard ground. Replaying the wedding over and over in his mind was proving to be quite frustrating. The memories of past years, they seemed all so precious now as he too replayed them. "Oh Akane," he sighed as he thought of all the ploys he had tried while pinning for her. Of course, like always, Ranma would always butt his head in and turn the situation around. "And all Akane really remembers me as is her beloved P-chan or my overly-excitable self ," he grumbled as he looked away from his fire in disgust. It was possibly the most pathetic thing he'd ever done in his life, sleeping on Akane's pillow every night, but the woman had drove him into a stupidified state with his blinding love for her and he wanted to do was protect her. For the longest time, both Ranma and Akane had taken his mind off of his lonely and empty life. He hadn't seen his father and mother in years and probably would to a few more years before he'd get lucky enough to catch them. Hell, the only one who would be home to greet him was Checkers, his dog. That is, if she wasn't to busy with her little puppies. "I'll have to get some dog food and go visit..." he said to the fire with a faint, bitter smile on his face. 'Truly pathetic..." he thought to himself as suddenly something came crashing through the forest. 'What the–,' Ryoga thought as he stared out into the forest in confusion. He knew that wasn't just some deer bounding around, no, it was much bigger than a deer or some boar. Well, being who he was, curiosity overcame him as he decided to investigate.

Leaping up onto his feet and running from his camp, he didn't even think that he'd lose himself in this thick forest. He lifted his arm to cross his face as he ripped through flimsy tree branches and leapt over fallen, decaying lumps of logs. As the incoming sound was accompanied by soft gasps , the thought of it being a wild boar flew from Ryoga's mind. Someone was in trouble! Reaching a tiny creek and looking up the stream, Ryoga watched as someone rolled into the creek with pack intact. Trotting over to whomever it was, the young man was surprised to see Ukyo just laying in the stream.

"Ukyo," he said aloud as he looked upon the seemly sleeping woman. 'What would she be doing all the way out here?,' he silently asked as the young lady seemed to stirred. Crouching down, Ryoga watched her intently as the young woman's eyes fluttered open.

"Ryoga?" she answered him as she tugged at her pack's straps and finally slipped her arms first. Propping herself up, she looked to him and gave the lost boy a soft smile. "I'm not much of a woodsman, I guess..." she said quietly to him as Ryoga stood and offered her his hand. As she took his hand, he gently helped her up to her feet. Letting her hand go, he also leaned over and grabbed her pack from the shallow stream it had been soaking in.

"No," he began "it looks like the forest won the fight." He let a soft chuckle as he turned back to her and listened for some kind of laughter. But when none came, Ryoga frowned. "Aw, I'm not that bad, am I?" Although he hadn't been able to meet up with her last night, he knew that she was still just as disappointed by the wedding as he was. The joke was his vain attempt to lighten his friend's mood. "Ucchan," he said as he stepped closer to her, "you okay?"

"Oh Ryoga," she answered in distress "I'm not. Do you mind, if we, uh, talked? I have all these things I need to get off my chest and no one to turn to. Please, Ryoga, say we can talk!" the young cook pleaded as he watched her turn from his eyes. Honestly, Ryoga was stunned. This was a whole new side of Ukyo he had never seen before! It was almost...disturbing.

"O-of course we can, Ukyo. I wanted to last night. I, uh, was trying to find you last night when I...got lost...again," the man answered as he tried to explain himself "we just have to get back to camp." As he said the last part, he realized suddenly that he wasn't quite sure where camp was. Pinching the bridge of his nose in both anger and frustration, he cursed his family genetics under his breath. Looking up at the sky, he spotted the tower of smoke coming from his camp fire. Luckily, because there really wasn't any real path in a forest and there wasn't any real direction, this was one of the Earth's domains he could understand. "Come on," he said as he took Ukyo's hand and began to lead her to his camp. Although it had been early in the afternoon when he had relit his fire, he always figured it might help him get out of trouble. For once in a long time, he was right.

With dusk turning to night, the not-so-lost one was quite relieved when they finally made it back. Stumbling into camp, Ryoga blushed as he remembered the pile of sandals he had been craving practically all night. Rushing over to them, he quickly scooped them all up and flung them randomly into the forest at a lighting pace. Turning to his guest, he gave her a nervous grin as he prayed she hadn't seen them. Ryoga really didn't want her to know about his project until he finally got one of the replicates just right. Seeing the original out in the open, he scooted over by it and kicked in behind his own pack. Placing her significantly smaller pack by his, he invited Ukyo into the camp with a sweeping gesture of his arms. "Please, make yourself at home" he stated polietly with a soft smile. Unlike Akane, Ryoga could be around Ukyo and not stumble over every word he said. They had always been friends, if he could say so, and so it was just like he was talking to Ranma.

The young cook stood on the outskirts of the camp for a moment and Ryoga wondered if she _had_ seen the sandals. Almost letting out a deranged chain of skittish laughter, he was relieved when Ukyo entered and went to her pack. As she unbuckled and flipped back the flap of her pack, Ryoga was puzzled as to what the young lady was doing. As she withdrew a blanket, two tiny cup and a bottle of saki, everything seemed to make sense. She was probably cold from sitting in the stream and both the saki and blanket would defiantly warm her up. Sitting down by his knife, he watched her as she wrapped herself in her blanket and scooted over to his side. Placing the bottle by the fire and the cups between them, a moment of silence settled in between them again. 'What should I say? Should I start the conversation? Or is she–' his thoughts were interrupted as Ukyo began to talk.

"I, uh, I don't really know where to begin. Everything's kinda been undone. I feel inadequate, really, like no one will ever see me for a woman again; that I'll never be able to be 'cute' Ukyo again." she explained solemnly. Pausing for a long moment, she then spoke again "there's no way I can go back to Father and I can't move from Nerima; I've got all my finances sunk to Ucchan's." Sighing heavily as she paused once more and tried to plan out her next sentence, she grumbled once more, " I feel like I've shamed the Kuonji name, Ryoga, like I've failed at my duties," the young woman tried to explain as Ryoga was once again blown away.

"Oh, Ucchan, that's not true. I bet thousands of men would line up to marry you! Remember when you wore those dresses and skirts, men were lining up left and right at the chance to date you! Not only are you pretty, you've got such a strong heart and mind. And who says you have to move away? I know it'll be hard to watch Ranma and Akane start their life together but I know you can do it. You just need somebody to help you through it, is all," Ryoga said as he tried to council his friend.

"Ryoga, I know you're just saying that to make me feel better," she said as she leaned forward to grab the saki bottle. Leaning back and pausing she turned to him and managed to give him a very weak but still a visible smile. Pouring some of the sweet saki into her cup and then his, she plucked the dish up from the ground and swiftly drank it in one gulp. Ryoga, while watching Ukyo in a somewhat surprised daze, followed suite before Ukyo poured them another round. After drinking a few cups in silence, Ukyo turned to Ryoga.

"So what's up with you? I know you must be hurtin' too, right?" the young chef said before drinking another cup "come on sugar, tell."

Sighing, he didn't feel so forth coming when it came to his feelings. After a lifetime of loneness and talking to the stars about his life, he hadn't ever managed to vent his feelings to another. But, when he thought of it, now was just as good as any time to start."Well," the lost one began as he sipped from his cup "I finally recently realized something about myself and my life." Beginning slowly, he wondered if he could really tell such things to Ukyo. Yes, they were friends, probably not as strong as he'd become with Ranma, but they were still pretty close. If he really couldn't talk to Ukyo, then who could he talk to?

" All this time, for years now, I've been using both Ranma and Akane. No, I wasn't trying to con them or anything like Nabiki. I was just..." he said as he paused, "distracting myself with them, ya know?" Saying this, he looked to Ukyo and motioned for another pour which she promptly supplied. "I mean, my original intentions were to finally have that fight over the bread that I'd missed so many years ago, to regain my honor. That's why I followed him to China. But, afterwards, when I met Akane, I just wanted to be with her. Ranma, well, he just happened to be in my way."Ryoga explained as he sipped from his cup. Unlike Ukyo, who was slamming her shots down left and right, he was taking his time with his drink, savoring the taste and warm that the saki provided.

Finishing his cup, he placed it down on the ground before continuing "But if you really boil it down, I mean, really boil it down to the bones, I followed Ranma and stayed with Akane because I had nothing more to do. My family is never home and I really don't know whether they are alive or dead. Hell, both of them could be at home but I'd never make it there in time to see them. Did you know I haven't seen neither my mother or father in at least five years? With all my attention on Ranma and Akane, I never really had the time to think about it. It was nice while it lasted though..."

Sighing heavily, he looked to Ukyo and was surprised to see a very drunk yet silent Ukyo staring directly at him. The glow of the fire warmed her skin and gave her a soft radiant glow. Her cheeks and lips were flushed from the alcohol and the shadows of the night danced across the features of her face. To Ryoga, Ukyo looked absolutely stunning and the sight of her made his own face flushed. His heart began to thump in his chest as Ukyo nuzzled her face into her chest and Ryoga was unsure if he should wrap his arm around her or not. Sometime was different this time, unlike all the platonic hand-holding that they had done over the years. This was different, the touch so more warmer and stranger than before.

"U-u-uc-chan,," Ryoga began to croaked as a lump formed in his throat. Why was he acting like this? He'd never stammered like a fool around Ukyo before. Then again, he had never really had Ukyo nearly laying on him before. When a groggy moan was the only response he could muster from the girl, he looked down and was relieved to see poor little Ucchan passed out. Sighing with relief, he was profusily glad that this situation had ended in such a manner. While Ryoga still had much of his wiles to him, the alcohol had been working its magic on his judgement and thoughts. There were so many stories out there about...drunken nights of perversion that Ryoga had heard about and while Ucchan was a pretty girl, she really did deserve more than that. Scooping her up into his arms, he laid her down in the tent before exiting back out into the camp ground again. Sitting down where he had before, he grabbed the sandals he'd been carved and began to chisel away again.


End file.
